Don't think that is likely to happen, most perps committing property damage type crimes usually run as fast as they can when confronted.
That said, do I carry when I go outside to investigate a noise in the middle of the night ? Yep. And my wife is also armed inside the house while I am outside checking things out.
My nightstand gun is a Glock 23 with internal lasermax laser and a rail mounted Glock flashlight. The light is extremly bright and covers a good area with intense white light. That is much better than trying to handle a gun and a flashlight. If I do encounter a perp outside, I am sure that the little red dot on his chest will get his attention once the flashlight lights him up. Unless he is a complete dumbazz, I think he will get the message. Even if he runs away, I doubt he will be back again.
The bright flashlight would also allow me to get a decent description to use when I call 911.
This happened at our house not long back. Heard a vehicle in the alley, then a commotion in our back yard. They were long gone by the time I got outside, but as it turned out the police were chasing them. They ditched the car in the alley, climbed over my back fence, ran through the yard and over the front fence as they were running from the cops.
I live in a small town, and I am the former Police Chief here. When the officers saw my flashlight inside my back yard, they were in the alley and yelled "don't shoot, Dave, we're looking for guys that ran from us"........ guess it pays to be well known.
